How to Still Have Your BIG Day in the Midst of a Recession

Let’s not beat around the bush here, a wedding is going to set you back more than a couple of thousand ‘kay. It’s probably one of the most expensive events of your life and everything, from the dress to the accessories, venue, gifts and food is going to add up. And we’re in the midst of a recession…

Which doesn’t mean that you need to can the idea. Anything but. Because there are way in which you can stretch the budget and make it go a lot further than if you just threw money at every whimsical idea. And here’s how:

Follow the trend – take less time to plan the wedding
Save money by doing a last-minute wedding plan. That way you cut back on all the trimmings and end up with the bare essentials, and be spontaneous. You’ll have to streamline and won’t get sucked into the bottomless pit of what it is to carry off an elaborate wedding…

Take advantage of the season
Get married in off-peak times. For instance, a Saturday is the most expensive day for hiring venues, because of its popularity for weddings. So, choose another day. And look out for off-season specials – like Spring, Autumn or Winter.

Shorten the guest list
This is rather obvious. The fewer people you invite, the fewer mouths you have to feed, chairs and tables you have to provide, invitations you need to send etc.

In your invitation, include an option to donate services rather than give a gift
This is a fabulous idea to save money for both you and your guests, and you’ll be surprised how many of your friends can contribute – your photographer friend, your cousin who plays wedding co-ordinator in her spare time and your brother’s partner who is a designer when not working as a buyer for the Foschini group.

Make use of websites like ‘too du. co.za’, eBay and Gumtree
Too du is where you can get advice, information, proposals on just about anything – not sure that they’d plan your wedding for you, but they will help if you’re doing your venue decoration yourself, or planning your reception at home etc. And eBay and Gumtree are really worth scouring for second-hand anything.

Choose an alternative (free) wedding venue
Like a park, the local zoo, the beach, courthouse or a friend’s garden.